Author Notes:This recipe was inspired by Martha Rose Shulman’s apple clafoutis. I was hoping to make a main-dish clafoutis for an early Sunday supper. I love mushrooms of all stripes, and especially sautéed in browned butter. You could easily just use the sherried mushrooms for crostini, or as a side dish to chicken or veal. If you’re making this on a weeknight, you can actually prepare the mushrooms the day before and bring them to room temperature while you’re making the clafoutis batter. I used a really nutty Gruyère that I like a lot, and about halfway through, the top was already browned so I covered it in foil.
—drbabs

Food52 Review: WHO: Drbabs is a longtime Food52 member (and a doctor!) with an impressive roster of winning recipes.
WHAT: Herby mushrooms spiked with sherry baked in a custardy egg batter.
HOW: Cook down mushrooms in brown butter, stir in sherry and thyme, then fold into a savory clafoutis batter, top with grated Gruyère, and bake until golden.
WHY WE LOVE IT: The butter, sherry, and thyme complement the mushrooms wonderfully. And making them into a clafoutis is a genius touch. We had it straight out of the oven and again at room temperature the next day. In both instances the clafoutis performed admirably. I will be making both components of the recipe often. —lmikkel —The Editors

In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat and let it brown, watching carefully so it doesn’t burn. As soon as the butter is brown and smells nutty, scrape in shallots, turn heat down to medium, and stir and sauté till they soften. Pour in mushrooms, add 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and stir shallots and mushrooms together. Cook mushrooms with shallots and browned butter until they are soft and browned, turning occasionally. This should take about 15 minutes. When the mushrooms are browned and most of their liquid has evaporated, pour in the sherry and stir in the thyme, scraping up the brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Continue to sauté the mushrooms until the liquid has reduced and thickened. Taste and add salt and freshly ground black pepper as desired.

For the clafoutis

3
eggs

1/2
teaspoon salt

2/3
cup all-purpose flour

1 1/2
cups milk

2
ounces aged Gruyère, grated

Freshly ground black pepper

Heat oven to 375° F. In the bowl of a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, blend the eggs with salt until frothy. Add milk and mix well. Add the flour and mix until frothy and thoroughly incorporated, 1 to 2 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Pour the batter over the mushrooms. Sprinkle the top with the grated Gruyère. Grind a little black pepper over the top. Place the dish in the center of the oven. Bake until the center puffs and turns a golden color, and the clafoutis is set, about 30 to 40 minutes (Cover with foil if the top browns too quickly.)
Serve warm or at room temperature.

I would like to know if I can freeze this a then just warm it up for company dinner? And if you do not think it will freeze well, can I then make it early in the day cooking it most the way and then just warm it up? If I make 1 1/2 recipes, would it fit in my deep dish 9 inch pie pan? If you can clear these issues up for me, I would really appreciate it. Thank you....

Michael, I'm sorry, but I really don't know. I think making it part way ahead rather than freezing it would work better. And I think if you want to increase the recipe, it would be better to make two, or use a larger rather than deeper pan. I hope this helps.

Can someone describe the finished texture for me? Mine came out rather like a custard and I'm wondering if I failed to beat the eggs enough or took it out of the oven too soon. (I used the time indicated - it was brown and set but not puffy.) Flavour was delicious but overall result was heavier than I expected. I am new to clafouti! Thanks.

Thinking of making this for a brunch next weekend, but would need to double. The porcelain baking dish in the pix looks ~ 9" or 10" diameter (?) - wondering if a bigger rectangular (9x12) shallow porcelain baking dish would work for a double? Not the traditional clafoutis shape, but seems like it would be ok, as long as I adjusted baking time - have you ever done one like that?

The recipe doesn't say, but I assume the baking dish should be buttered? Also (final question!) - I have a fair amount of both dry Marsala and Madeira on hand, which are often good subs for sherry and happen to be mushroom friendly...thoughts? Don't mind picking up some sherry, if that sounds 'off'. Thx!

Hi amysarah! I think your idea will work well although I've never done it. I make it in a9 inch pie pan. The area of that pan is a little more than half the area of the 9x12 pan, so I think if you double the recipe, it should work fine. I also think both the Marsala and Madeira would be fine substitutions for sherry. Good luck! I hope it turns out well for you.

I made this Friday and my husband and I both LOVED it. I ate it again for breakfast the next day. The mushrooms and the amount of sherry are just spot on and I will be taking your advice and putting them on crostini.

I'm sorry for not responding sooner; I just saw this. I think almond flour might just make it really greasy-- it's not really flour, and it's really high in fat. If you want to make it gluten free, use an AP flour substitute like cup4cup. Bob's Red Mill makes one, too, that's pretty good. (Not the one with bean flour.) Good luck! Please let us know how it turns out.

What's up with the "I will be making both components of the recipe often. ed vegetable soups without cream or starch of any sort can occasionally leave us sighing with boredom, but this soup has some truly great flavor to carry it. It's a pain to peel the beets with gloves, sure, but once they're all roasted, they purée nicely and quickly with some stock. The resulting soup has a straightforward flavor that makes you feel virtuous. Plate the soup in a shallow bowl to keep the polenta croutons from sinking, and be generous with the pistachio vinaigrette, which adds some texture and zing. Here's a way for beet lovers to enjoy their favorite kind of soup—even in the summertime." by the Food Editors. Mistake on the review?

Looks like a great recipe. Anything that can be serve warm or at room temperature is a bonus.